THURSDAY, July 2, 2015 – Fireworks, picnics and parades are favorite Fourth of July traditions for many people, but for those with allergies or asthma these activities could be uncomfortable or even dangerous. "Summer is the time of year when everyone wants to enjoy being outside," said allergist Dr. James Sublett, president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. "That's why it's so important to be prepared, so allergies and asthma don't overshadow the festivities." Asthma and allergy experts offer these tips for avoiding or coping with common summer triggers, particularly on the holiday weekend: Smoke: Fireworks and campfires are fun holiday traditions but smoke can trigger an asthma flare-up. Try to maintain a safe distance from fireworks and campfires or stand upwind. It's also important to carry a reliever inhaler at all times. Chlorine: Chlorine isn't an ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, July 1, 2015 – Most Americans know that fireworks can injure the eyes and hands, but these Fourth of July favorites can also take a toll on the lungs, a new study finds. Researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found fireworks produce air pollutants, including tiny particles found in the air known as particulate matter. These microscopic particles of dust, dirt, soot, smoke and liquids can get inside the lungs and cause coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath. They can also lead to long-term health issues, such as asthma attacks, heart attack, stroke and even death in those with heart or lung disease. Using observations from 315 U.S. air quality-monitoring sites recorded from 1999 to 2013, the NOAA researchers quantified the surge in particulate matter that occurred on the nation's birthday. Specifically, they looked for particles that ... Read more

FRIDAY, June 26, 2015 – Losing weight may help reduce asthma severity in obese adults, a new Canadian study finds. "We were pleased to see significant improvement in asthma symptoms, as well as quality of life for these individuals. This study further supports the need to manage [chronic disorders] to improve patient lives," said study author Dr. Smita Pakhale, from The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa. People who are obese are about 1.5 times more likely to have asthma than those who aren't obese. A 3-unit increase in body mass index – BMI, an estimate of body fat based on weight and height – is associated with a 35 percent increase in the risk of asthma, the researchers said in a news release from the American College of Chest Physicians. A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered normal weight. A BMI of 25 to 29.9 is overweight, while 30 and over is considered obese. The ... Read more

-- Poor outdoor air quality may spur breathing problems among people with asthma or other respiratory issues. The American Lung Association advises: Be aware of the air quality and pollution levels each day in your area. Exercise indoors when air quality is poor, and restrict outdoor playtime for children. Cut down on driving by carpooling, biking or walking to work. Avoid burning wood or trash, and use battery-powered or electric lawn machinery instead of gas-powered devices. Keep indoor air quality healthier by prohibiting smoking at home. Read more

FRIDAY, June 12, 2015 – Asthma treatments, especially inhaled corticosteroids, are less likely to work for older patients, a new study suggests. Researchers looked at 1,200 patients with mild-to-moderate asthma, and found that treatment failure occurred in about 17 percent of those aged 30 and older, compared with about 10 percent of those younger than 30. Lower lung function and having asthma for a longer time were associated with a higher risk of treatment failure. When the researchers focused on specific therapies, they found that treatment failure increased consistently for every year above age 30 among patients who used inhaled corticosteroids. Patients aged 30 and older who used inhaled corticosteroids, either alone or in combination with other therapies, were more than twice as likely to have treatment failure than those younger than 30, the investigators found. Men and women ... Read more

THURSDAY, June 11, 2015 – Workouts that really get the heart pumping may help ease asthma in people with the respiratory condition, a new Brazilian study finds. Researchers led by Celso Carvalho of the University of Sao Paolo School of Medicine looked at outcomes for 43 people, aged 20 to 59, with moderate to severe asthma. They were randomly selected to do 30-minute yoga breathing exercises twice a week, or the breathing exercises plus a 35-minute indoor treadmill session twice a week. After three months, those in the treadmill group showed greater reductions in asthma severity and more improvement in their quality of life, according to the study published June 10 in the journal Thorax. For example, Carvalho tested the participants' "bronchial hyperresponsiveness" – the speed at which the airway constricts in asthmatics – and found improvements in people who engaged in aerobic ... Read more

TUESDAY, May 26, 2015 – Despite hints from prior research that soy supplements might help asthma patients breathe easier, a major new study finds the nutrient has no beneficial effect on lung function. "This study highlights why it is so important to perform well-designed, placebo-controlled studies when associations are reported between specific nutrients and disease outcomes," study lead author Dr. Lewis Smith, professor of medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said in a university news release. The study, published in the May 26 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, also highlights the need to focus on overall health – including diet and lifestyle – to manage asthma, rather than on specific approaches such as consuming more soy, he said. "You are what you eat, but that's a whole constellation of foods, not just a single food or a ... Read more

FRIDAY, May 22, 2015 – A new study suggests, but does not prove, that men with asthma may be less likely to develop aggressive prostate cancer or to die from the disease. Researchers found that men with asthma were 29 percent less likely to develop aggressive prostate cancer. And they were 36 percent less likely to die from the disease, according to the study. However, the findings do not show that asthma protects men from prostate cancer, according to Elizabeth Platz, professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore. "We don't know yet whether the association we see in this observational study is a case of cause and effect," Platz said in a Hopkins news release. The researchers analyzed data from nearly 48,000 American men between the ages of 40 ... Read more

SUNDAY, May 17, 2015 – Sensitivity to peanuts is common among children with asthma, yet many children and their parents are unaware of the problem, a new study finds. There's been little research into the link between childhood asthma and peanut allergy, according to the study authors. "Many of the respiratory symptoms of peanut allergy can mirror those of an asthma attack, and vice versa. Examples of those symptoms include shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing," said the study lead author, Dr. Robert Cohn from Mercy Children's Hospital in Toledo, Ohio, in a news release from the American Thoracic Society. The study findings were scheduled to be presented Sunday at the American Thoracic Society meeting in Denver. Findings presented at meetings are generally viewed as preliminary until they've been published in a peer-reviewed journal. Cohn and his colleagues analyzed the medical ... Read more

MONDAY, May 11, 2015 – Federal action to protect the ozone layer has resulted in a dramatic increase in the cost of asthma inhalers in recent years, according to a new study. In 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned asthma inhalers containing chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), substances that contribute to the depletion of ozone in the upper atmosphere. Immediately following the ban, the mean cost of asthma inhalers rose from $13.60 per prescription in 2004 to $25 in 2009, said lead study author Dr. Anupam Jena, an assistant professor of health care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston. "We're talking about – at its peak – a 100 percent increase, a doubling of out-of-pocket costs," Jena said. The cost of asthma inhalers decreased slightly in the following months, dropping to an average $21 by the end of 2010, Jena said. Their price has hovered around that ... Read more

TUESDAY, May 5, 2015 – After seeking medical treatment in the emergency room for an asthma attack, women are much more likely than men to need hospitalization, researchers report. Scientists analyzed the likelihood that 2,000 patients treated in the ER for asthma would need to be admitted to the hospital. Although the men and women had similar risk factors for a flare-up of their condition, women were still 60 percent more likely to be hospitalized, according to the study, published May 5 in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. "It's long been known that after puberty, asthma is more common in women than men," Dr. James Sublett, president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, said in a journal news release. "Only 10 percent of the women in this study had been seen by an allergist in the last year," Sublett added. "Those who see an allergist and use ... Read more

London, UK, and South San Francisco, CA, USA, 30 April 2015 – GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE: GSK) and Theravance, Inc. (NASDAQ: THRX) today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Breo Ellipta (fluticasone furoate/vilanterol [FF/VI]) for the once-daily treatment of asthma in patients aged 18 years and older. Breo Ellipta is not indicated for the relief of acute bronchospasm. Breo is a fixed-dose combination of the inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) fluticasone furoate (FF) and the long-acting beta2-agonist (LABA) vilanterol (VI). Two strengths, 100/25mcg and 200/25mcg, have been approved in the US for use in asthma, administered once-daily using the Ellipta dry powder inhaler. Darrell Baker, SVP & Head, GSK Global Respiratory Franchise, said: “Asthma is a variable condition and guidelines recommend a stepwise approach to treatment with th ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, April 22, 2015 – Researchers say they've identified a gene that affects whether children with asthma respond to corticosteroids. Corticosteroids are the most effective treatment for chronic asthma and acute asthma attacks, but some children don't respond well to the drugs. Researchers analyzed the genomes of 57 children with asthma, and found that the activity of a gene called VNN-1 affected whether they were good or poor responders to corticosteroid treatment. The study was published April 21 in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. The gene "may serve as a clinically useful biomarker to identify a subset of difficult-to-treat asthmatic children, and targeting the VNN-1 pathway may be useful as a therapeutic strategy," senior study author Dr. Gurjit Khurana Hershey, director of the Asthma Research Center at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, said in a ... Read more

THURSDAY, April 9, 2015 – Asthma rates are essentially identical among black children living in Detroit and rural Georgia, researchers report. The finding challenges the common belief that living in a city boosts the chances of developing the respiratory condition, the study authors said. Instead, poverty may be what increases asthma risk, the study results suggested. "The things these children have in common include high rates of poverty, asthma and being black," corresponding study author Dr. Dennis Ownby, an allergist-immunologist at the Medical College of Georgia, said in a college news release. In the study, the investigators analyzed data from nearly 7,300 students at six public high schools in Detroit and more than 2,500 students at four schools in rural Georgia. More than 90 percent of the children in Detroit and 60 percent of the children in rural Georgia are black, the ... Read more

THURSDAY, April 9, 2015 – Wheezing and coughing on the job from work-related asthma is more common than you might think, according to a new U.S. health report. Almost 16 percent of American adults with asthma either developed the condition on the job or have asthma symptoms made worse by conditions in their workplace, said Dr. Jacek Mazurek, lead author of a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That adds up to an estimated 1.9 million cases of work-related asthma in the 22 states that were part of the CDC study. "Work-related asthma is associated with increased disability, mortality, and adverse social and economic outcomes," said Mazurek, a lead research epidemiologist with the division of respiratory disease studies at the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Many people who have asthma flare-ups at work experience poor quality ... Read more